On March 13,thrash metal legends, Megadeth played the Town Ballroom in Buffalo NY with Testament and Exodus. Before the show started, I had the opportunity to chat with Megadeth's guitarist Chris Broderick. During this conversation, we discussed the band's current tour, the return of bassist David Ellefson, the upcoming shows with Metallica and much more. Please check out our conversation below.

Megadeth has just kicked off their American tour in support of their twelfth studio album “Endgame.” The band has received glowing reviews from fans and critics alike. “Endgame” is considered to be one of the best metal releases of the year. One of the reasons for the success and acclaim of the CD is the killer guitar work. In addition to Megadeth leader Dave Mustaine mega-shredding, new guitarist Chris Broderick adds a new and fresh dimension to the band. Broderick is an accomplished guitarist who had previously played in metal bands Nevermore and Jag Panzer. In addition, he also has a degree in classical guitar at University of Denver's Lamont School of Music.

What follows is an exclusive interview with one of the most talented guitarist in rock music today, Megadeth's Chris Broderick.

RockMusicStar: Chris, how are you today?Chris Broderick: Good, we just finished soundcheck and everything sounded good. So, I’m pretty happy.

RMS: Awesome, I checked out your setlist and wow, what a killer set of songs. CB: Yes, it’s really fast pace.

RMS: Will you be switching it around at all?CB: Yeah, we will be switching it up a bit. We do our best to try to please everyone, but the discography is so long. You have to pick and chose what songs you can play in an hour and a half.

RMS: I’m a little surprised that you only play two songs from your new Cd, “1320” and “Headcrusher.”. Do you plan on adding more in the near future?CB: Definitely, in a few months I’m sure that we will be able to rip out any song from the new CD at will.

RMS: You have to be pretty happy with the success of “Endgame.” The fans and critics both love it and it debuted at #9 on the Billboard charts.CB: Yeah, that was great. I was very honored to be in the top 10.

RMS: This is your first Cd with Megadeth, where you a fan of the band before you joined?CB: Yes, but more because of my shredder roots. I always listened to all the fast players and everyone on Shrapnel Records. Marty Friedman was one of the guys I listen to and when he joined Megadeth is when I joined as a fan. From there, I started listening to their back catalog. Chris Poland, Jeff Young and even Glen Drover, he’s got some good riffs too.

RMS: Since you’re such an accomplished guitarist yourself, how do you rate Dave Mustaine as a guitarist? Can you maybe give us some insight?CB: Well, I don’t know if I can enlighten you to anything you don’t already know. But, Dave has such a unique personality. You know when you hear a guitar great you can tell right away it’s them. That personality kind of transmits to the instrument. That’s one thing that I really like about Dave’s playing. And that’s something that I’m searching for myself in my playing. Dave learned a lot of what he does on guitar from the street in a way. He figured out his own riffs and sense of tonality. I had formal training and started taking lessons as soon as I picked up the guitar. And I got my degree in classical guitar performance. It’s like different roads coming together.

RMS: Do you plan on releasing any of your classical material soon?CB: (pauses) There’s so much to do right now within Megadeth that I really wouldn’t have time to do it right now. So no, not in the near future, but maybe someday.

RMS: Megadeth was scheduled to co-headline a few dates in Canada with Slayer this month, but those shows were cancelled due to Tom Araya’s back problems. But you have played shows with them in the past. When Megadeth plays with Slayer, is there a sense of competition? Do you get a little more pumped up and maybe even try to upstage them?CB: No, not at all. I’m sure it’s the same in their camp as well. You try to put on the best show no matter what the circumstances are. So if we are playing with Slayer or a local opening band, we are going to try to improve our show no matter what. To make sure the people enjoy it, when they see it.

RMS:Can you comment on the rumors of a Megadeth,Slayer, Testament tour? CB:Yes, I can comment on that. I’ve heard the rumors as well many times. I honestly haven’t seen anything that this is going to happen or not.

RMS:The fans really want this and I would think it would be a smart business move when it’s so difficult to sell tickets.CB: Yes, I think from a fans point it would be an awesome tour to see. Something that I missed in the day, and the chance to see something like that would be awesome.(Ed note: Within 12 hours of this interview, the tour featuring Megadeth, Slayer and Testament was announced)

RMS: As far as your guitar playing, do you think it has improved or evolved since you joined Megadeth?CB:It has evolved, and it is definitely improved. It’s from being in this environment where you are scrutinized a lot more. There’s like a microscope on your playing and the way you present yourself and everything. So it makes you much more conscious.

RMS: What was the writing process like on “Endgame?” Did Dave already have the material written and you just added your parts or did you start at ground zero and work together as a band?CB: It was all of the above. The majority of the CD was written by him. We all submitted ideas. When he put his riffs in, we gave our input on those riffs and ideas.